Earth
Earth is the third planet orbiting the yellow dwarf star Sol, as well as its largest terrestrial world. It is notable for being the home of the human race and the headquarters of the United Federation of Human Worlds. Astrography and geography Earth lies in the Goldilocks Zone of the Sol System, a star system located 24,798-24,802 light years away from the Core, tucked away deep in the Orion Arm around halfway between the edge of the outer rim and the core of the Galaxy. The planet orbits about 1 AU (149.6 million kilometers) from its parent star, Sol, making it a haven for countless forms of life, which all thrive due to the large presence of free oxygen in the atmosphere, despite the fact that the vast majority of the planet's atmosphere is composed of nitrogen. The only other planet in the Sol System which lies in the Goldilocks Zone is Mars. Earth is a large terrestrial planet which was formed 4.6 billion years ago, from dust and other matter accreting around the newly formed Sol. Earth has an extremely massive iron core, which makes the planet the densest in the Sol System. This core is surrounded by a liquid outer core, a partially liquid mantle, and a solid crust. Earth's crust is divided into many tectonic plates, which move periodically and result in an active geosphere; Earth is the only planet in the Sol System, and one of the few known worlds in the entire Orion Arm with active tectonics and earthquakes are commonplace as such. Most, however, are too minute to detect and any major earthquakes can be predicted well in advance, sometimes even months prior to the event taking place. In addition to this, strict building codes in most nation-states and advanced technology enable recovery to take place quickly in case of a major tectonic event. Cities at greatest risk of earthquakes, tsunamis, and other natural disasters are protected against the elements by huge glass domes which cover them whole. New York City, one of the largest cities on the planet, suffered chronic flooding throughout its history due to global warming beginning in the mid-to-late 21st century, and as such was the first city on Earth to have a dome built around it in 2273. All major cities and metropolitan areas across the eastern seaboard of the United States followed suit over the next thirty years, and eventually, disaster-prone cities in other parts of the world, such as Tokyo, invested in these domes. Overview Earth is mostly populated by the most intelligent of its native species, Humans, which mostly inhabit huge metropolises, some with populations that exceed 50 million. Such cities are not uncommon on the planet, although due to fears of overpopulation, some cities were actually built in Earth orbit and are locked to the planet by its gravity well. By the early 28th century, global warming, which was a major problem for Earth during the 20th and 21st centuries, has been stopped and most harmful particles and gases in the atmosphere have been eliminated, which meant that despite the massive cities and the intense traffic around them, Humans can enjoy the fresh and warm air. Politically, the planet is divided into 200 distinct regions referred to as being countries or nations, similar to what Graxlan-1 is subdivided into, all with different economic systems, cultures, and languages, though 96% of the population is fluent in Standard Galactic English. Each nation is governed by either a president, an emperor or a monarch, but the planetary government is controlled by the UFHW as a whole. Although the Earth once suffered severe overpopulation, especially in the 24th and 25th centuries, mass migrations to colonized worlds at the turn of the 26th century onwards helped alleviate the problem, allowing the population to steadily drop from 300 billion to 100 billion. Regardless of this, the effects of overpopulation are still glaringly obvious at times, with underground slums constructed from scraps common in many cities and an average surface temperature of 20°C (68°F; 293 K) resulting from mass pollution. Earth is home to the UFHW, which is one of the largest and most powerful factions in the Galaxy and is also a major tourist destination for travelers from all over the Galaxy, with billions of tourists from all over the Milky Way visiting yearly. The planet's economy is amongst the most stable in the UFHW and relies on starships, starship parts, food, drinking water, technology, metals, weapons, transportation equipment (including interstellar drives, which originated on the planet) and helium-3 imported from Uranus. The general wealth of the Earth is difficult to calculate to an exact value, but most estimates suggest that at roughly G$675,000 trillion (ME875 trillion) the planet's economy is the second wealthiest in the known Galaxy, after Graxlan-1's economy. Despite heavy urbanization, including small cities on the northern island of Greenland and at the south pole on Antarctica, humanity and nature coexist together in relative peace. All forests and areas of natural beauty, such as mountain ranges (i.e. the Himalayas) are protected by strict laws regarding their use in order to improve the planet's dwindling enviroscore. However, unfortunately, due to decades of deforestation and exploitation of the natural environment over the centuries, the planet's enviroscore is a measly 3 out of 100. Category:Sol System Category:Planets Category:Locations Category: UFHW Category:UFHW planets and systems Category:Orion Arm